The North American study dream

At present, around 90% of our current Year 13 hold offers for UK universities, which includes Russell Group institutions like Manchester, Southampton, Bristol and York. Courses range from traditional subjects in business, economics and literature, plus science and engineering degrees.

However, in addition to this excellent response from top UK universities, around one quarter of our Year 13 applied to North American universities, with almost 60% having now received offers from the likes of New York University, UPenn, Babson, Northeastern and Notre Dame.

As the third cohort to pass through our Sixth Form, our current Year 13 have high-flying alumni for inspiration. In the last two years, Wetherby Senior’s Sixth Form has received over thirty offers for sixth formers to study in the USA. These include Georgetown University, UCSD, University of Chicago, UCLA and a D1 Football Scholarship to the University of Akron.

The attraction of US study is clear, as Mrs Deedat, Head of Sixth Form, explains: “Studying abroad is very appealing, providing an opportunity to enjoy a different culture and way of life first-hand. In addition, the American education system typically lets undergraduates explore a wider range of subjects before declaring your major. This can be particularly attractive to our sixth formers who want to enjoy studying a broader range of topics before specialising.”

Current Year 13, Faris, has an offer for New York University. He echoed Mrs Deedat’s words: “I have always been excited by the prospect of pushing boundaries and experiencing new things, so applying to the US was a great option. I chose Global Liberal Studies because it is a chance to develop my passions in English and History, as well as explore what NYU has to offer by selecting a minor in a different course.”

Since the process of applying to US universities differs to the UCAS system, our Sixth Form team supports and encourages the ambitions of our young people with two US university advisors based at our central London site. These external experts provide one-to-one guidance on the application process and offer weekly group sessions on preparing application essays. Wetherby Senior’s current Year 11 also started weekly sessions after the February half-term, as our School believes early preparation is essential for the best applications.

Robert, in Year 13, has been accepted to University of Notre Dame in Indiana to read Environmental Sciences and Sociology. He said: “During our weekly sessions on applying to the States, our US university advisor explained how we should approach writing our common application essay and our supplemental essays for each university. I was also able to send this advisor my supplemental essays, before I submitted, and get further feedback.”

Alongside applications to top universities in the USA and Canada, Wetherby Senior also supports plans to study at leading universities outside the UK, in Europe. For 2022, this includes successful applications to institutions like Bocconi in Milan, Italy and IE University in Madrid, Spain, with our Sixth Form staff providing bespoke advice and guidance to all boys.

Wetherby Senior’s Headmaster, Joe Silvester, said: “I’m delighted to see so many of our ambitious and talented sixth formers applying successfully to world-leading universities in the UK and abroad.

“Applying to study outside the UK, in North America or continental Europe, can be incredibly complex, even before you consider that this is taking place alongside A Level studies, involvement in co-curricular activities, and submission of a UCAS application. I’m very proud that our Sixth Form team and US advisers can offer specialist advice and guidance, with this support reflected in the incredible number of offers received so far.”